A Definite Change
by jai-kun
Summary: My first... and only... self insertion fic of sorts. It seemed so funny at the time.


**A Definite Change  
By Jai-kun**

It was just a simple walk!

My girlfriend had needed something from the store to add to dinner. I volunteered, having missed my evening walk ritual from my old home. Since the store was a short distance away, I told her I would be maybe ten minutes. She told me to be careful, and I joked that even if I did get attacked, it would be good 'training'. She punched me in the arm lightly, and repeated that I should be careful.

Now, my martial arts skill is... rudimentary at best. But the neighborhood is safe for the most part, I wasn't worried. The only martial arts skill I might need would be balancing on the slightly raised edge of the sidewalk.

I was taking martial arts for exercise only. In fact, before my wonderful girlfriend had introduced me to Anime in general, and Ranma 1/2 in particular, I had no interest in martial arts. Now, I was hooked. I watched the show everyday, I took up martial arts, I even wrote stories about the characters, trying to emulate Ms. Takahashi. I even had my girlfriend braid my ponytail, which I had kept from my highschool days. She had thought it ridiculous, but grew to like it. I keep it in a braid to this day. I guess I became obsessed, but I hadn't let it interfere with anything... a mild obsession, at best.

The trip to the store had been uneventful. The streets were rain-slicked, but the rain had stopped, and the night was warm. I had grown used to this weather pattern. She had warned me of it before I moved to Texas. I had cut through the alleyway between the market and a laundromat, so I saw no problem doing so to come home. It would cut my travel time in half.

"You're in our territory."

My blood froze. I am not a very brave soul, despite my large size. I turned to see six rather tough looking people coming from the shadows.

"I- I just want to go home... I don't want any trouble." My voice quavered, embarrassing me, but matching my trembling knees perfectly. Behind me, I heard a short laugh. I whirled around, startled.

The man in the middle of the five who had appeared behind me was large, with stringy, long black hair and a maniacal look in his eyes. His gang was dressed in a variety of leather and cotton, making them look... like something out of a bad movie. But the tattoo under the leader's eye, the word 'BLADE' with a wicked looking knife underlining it, sent shivers up and down my spine.

"You just wanna go home?" He wrapped an arm around my shoulder, as if he had been my best friend for years. "Oh, don't worry, guy. We'll let you go home." His smile was sickly-sweet, and a cruel giggle from behind me told me he was lying.

Right that moment, I became aware of every emotion I was feeling. My knees were trembling in fear, my mind was reacting in confusion, my stomach...

Calm.

As suddenly as that, I felt a deep calm, almost confidence. These guys couldn't hurt me, it seemed to say.

I wasn't convinced. _This must be what it feels like just before you die..._

It was a strange feeling, not at all what I had expected. The confidence building inside of me was familiar, but I didn't recognize it as my own. It was as if something were awakening inside of me, as these evil men moved to do me harm.

It was almost... excitement?

Yes! That was it... excitement! I wanted these idiots to attack me!

Even as I dropped into my stance, I was arguing with myself. _What are you doing?!? You're no fighter!_

Evidently, Blade thought the same thing. "Hey, lookee here, boys. Someone thinks he's Bruce Fin Lee!" The gang members laughed at their leader's wit and continued to surround me. "Yeah, we'll show him a thing or two about fightin'!" called one confident punk.

"I'm not Bruce Lee," I said calmly, the smile in my voice nearly showing through to my face. The little voice in the back of my mind chose that moment to pipe up again. _Don't taunt them, just give them your wallet and get the hell out of here!_

Evidently, I wasn't listening to myself.

"Oh no?" sneered Blade, making his tattoo wrinkle under his eye. "Who are you then?

If you were to ask why I said what I said, or how I did what I did, I would have had only three words for you.

I. Don't. Know.

I jumped high in the air, my body twisting in to a graceful backwards arc over the gang members who had circled behind me. While I was in the air, my voice rang out, "I'm Ranma Saotome of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts..."

_Where in the **hell** did that come from?!?_

I landed two feet behind the closest tough in a perfect back leg fighting stance and continued my monologue. "...and I accept your challenge!"

_Oooohh boy! I've gone **nuts**!_

The gang looked absolutely shocked, staring at me. Then Blade's face screwed up in rage. "Get him!!!"

Whatever part of me that had been arguing before must have decided to find a safe corner to hide in. All doubt and questions fled from my mind, leaving me confident that I, at least, would walk home under my own, if newly found, power.

I met the first unfortunate thug with a spinning backfist, increasing his momentum to carry him past me and into the wall of the laundromat. As he slumped to the ground, a second and third victim met hard beneath my now airborne feet. I kicked each in the shoulder to get them out of the way so that I could land.

"Awww, c'mon. Can't you do better than this? I was hoping for a workout..."

Two and three stood back up, shaken, and staggered toward me, trying their groggy best to accommodate my request. Almost without thinking, my foot flicked to either side, sending them into unconscious rest from the night's activities.

Blade could not have been more angry at his gang's seeming incompetence. "He was shakin' in his sneakers five minutes ago, you aholes!! GET!!! HIM!!!" He was still screaming obscenities as he shoved three others into the fray. The first two stumbled toward me. The third hung back, obviously not afraid, but still none too eager to face me.

His companions weren't eager to face me, either, but were more afraid of Blade than me. They tried to attack in concert, but couldn't decide who should go first.

I decided for them.

I thrust my right leg to the left, balancing by flinging my left foot to the right, twisting my body around and catching each opponent in a vulnerable spot. The attacker to my right reeled to the ground with a fist print in his face, while the one to my left doubled over as the nerve endings of his groin fired simultaneously with my foot's contact. I reached down, pulled him out of his fetal position, and poised to allow him to sleep through his pain.

The third foe joined in. He pulled a chain from his jacket and flicked his wrist, wrapping the weighted end around the hand that held his comrade, pulling my grip away, and sending his friend back to the ground.

"All right!! A challenge!" I held the chain taut with my captured wrist, counter-balanced so that he could not pull me off of my feet. Sweat poured from his forehead as he tried to yank me down. With strength that still surprises me, I jerked the chain and pulled him through the air toward me. Time slowed as he seemed to float away from my extended foot with a resounding thud. He twisted slowly in the air, his thumb, forefinger, and pinky of each hand extended.

Blade's red face screamed out "GET HIM!!!" again, but no one came running after me. I looked behind him, smirking, until he did the same. Just in time to see the last four members of his gang dashing around the corner.

"**COWARDS**!!" He tore his leather jacket off and dropped into a deep fighting stance, challenging me to advance with twitching fingers and clipped "c'mon"s.

I advanced on him slowly, also in fighting position. I didn't want to get cocky, especially after dispatching what must have been his best fighters, but I knew there was no way I'd let him beat me.

Not that I was going to knock him out too quickly. I still wanted that workout!

He came at me with his right foot, extending it from his hip. As I blocked, he countered with a backfist that was meant to take my nose, but that missed by a hair's breadth. I continued to stay on the defensive, instinctively gauging his skill. I hated to admit it, but he was pretty good.

His attacks became more furious as I either deflected or dodged them. He began to kick harder, punch faster, only to have me successfully turn it aside and tap him as a counter. Finally, he screamed in rage, "STRIKE, dammit!! Quit fighting like a **woman**!"

Something inside me snapped. Blood rushed to my face as I attacked in earnest. "Take that BACK!" I screamed, not understanding my own anger, but being driven to furious speed because of it. Blade was the one forced to defend, barely blocking most of my strikes, and failing to block the rest. Finally he jumped out of my range, reached behind him, and pulled out a knife that looked like the knife on his tattoo. A cruel smile played on his lips.

"Ain't none of your moves gonna get around my blade, Karate-boy," he sneered menacingly.

It was time to end this.

"It's Kenpo, you moron."

His blade slashed forward, skillfully tracing shining arcs of light reflected from the streetlights above. I skipped backward, avoiding the first two, then ducked under the third and rose just past his extended blade.

"KACHUU TENSHIN AMIGURIKEN!!"

My arm became a blur of motion, striking him over and over in spots I somehow knew were vulnerable. When it finally stopped, his face was only then registering shock and pain. I placed my finger on his forehead and pushed gently.

He fell over, still staring straight in front of him.

I picked up my dropped groceries, and stepped over the fallen bodies, continuing my journey home. The events of the night raced through my mind, giving a special look to everything. The clouds in the sky, the puddles on the street... everything looked... more alive.

My wildest fan- (_ahem_) My second wildest fantasy had somehow come true. Though I tried, I could not think of a disadvantage to this predicament. I was faster, stronger, more confident... I had the skill I needed to feel safe, and to protect my girlfriend if she was ever in trouble. Even explaining things would probably not be a problem...

I wasn't looking in the right place for this disadvantage.

A truck sped by, striking a large puddle and sending a wave of extremely cold water right on top of me.

I stared down at the ground that was a few inches closer, then at my chest, which was noticeably more... pronounced.

"This is gonna be harder to explain..."


End file.
